Page 37 of A Nest of Maple & Mist

In two long strides, he closed the distance between us.

It was too late. I was gone, captive to my omega. The strong, delectable scent of salted caramel grew, and a choked omega whimper scratched at my vocal cords.

“Love. Mia,” he rumbled, his velvet voice doing terrible things to my panties. “You are stunning.”

Knuckles feathered along the hinge of my jaw, and I shivered. My eyes fluttered shut. For a moment, we were teenagers again. I drifted to a place where Shane had never broken my heart, and I could curl into the chest of my scent-matched alpha.

I could just be with my pack.

My hand drifted, finding his. Rough skin scraped along mine, rows of calluses marring the once unblemished skin. The Shane I once knew had never done a day of manual labor in his life.

He had been all Merino wool, bespoke suits, and lotioned skin.

Yet, here he was. Torn jeans, rough hands, and tired eyes. This man was so different from the one I once loved.

Or maybe it was just wishful thinking.

Still, Jason and Ty loved him. One as a pack brother and the other as a mate. There had to be something more to Shane Hemlock. Too many emotions swirled in my belly, making it hard to breathe.

Two soulful brown eyes laced with flecks of mossy green pinned me in place. My body burned and my thighs ached and my brain screamed.

He wrapped a loose curl around his finger, tucking it behind my ear too gently. I perfumed, and a low growl rumbled past his lips.

“Mia. What’s wrong?”

“Shane. Stop. We shouldn’t.”

I can’t.

“Are you trying to steal my date, Shane?”

The tendril of whatever bloomed between us evaporated. Shane released me. I hated that I chased his touch.

Whatever loss we both seemed to battle with didn’t linger.

Ty rocked off the wood molding, dark jeans accentuating his muscled legs. Shane watched his beta with heavily lidded eyes.

I smirked, licking my lips at how indecent his forearms looked under his rolled sleeves. Slick pooled in my panties and I blushed, knowing both Ty and Shane scented my arousal.

“Careful, Ty,” Shane warned as he pulled the other man in by his nape. “Or do I have to tell your daddy you’re being a brat?”

Before Ty could speak, Shane fused his lips with Ty’s. I squirmed, feeling as though I should look away but unable to. They looked so beautiful like that—carefree and devoted. Shane’s finger swept over the bond bite on Ty’s neck, making the other man shudder.

Eventually, the two broke apart.

One side of Ty’s mouth lifted, a mischievous dimple glinting in the firelight.

“Promise?”

Ty waggled his brows, the tip of his tongue sliding over his kiss-bitten lips.

After a wayward glance in my direction, Shane pecked the top of Ty’s head, disappearing up the stairs. Ty’s gaze lingered on Shane’s ass—not that I blamed him—a shadow of something possessive crossing his features.

While Ty watched Shane walk away, I unabashedly ogled the gorgeous beta. He looked positively devastating. Corded muscles bulged in his forearms, faded scars interwoven with veins that pulsed beneath the surface.

My omega preened, and I wasn’t faring much better. Was swooning actually a thing? I thought that only happened in books. But here I was, on the cusp of swooning for this delightful beta who made my heart flutter and my skin tingle.

His smile landed on me, and that was it; I was ruined.